Michel Platini tells Celtic chief UEFA loves having them back in Champions League big time

PETER LAWWELL always felt Celtic were back among Europe’s elite. The warm greeting he got from Michel Platini confirmed it as fact.

UEFA’s most influential figure was waiting for the Parkhead chief executive at European football’s home in Nyon yesterday morning.

For Lawwell and Celtic, it was a defining moment. As the hierarchy of the Barcelonas and Real Madrids milled around in the meeting area outside the auditorium where the names waited in pots, Platini was with the Celtic contingent.

And the words he offered to Lawwell during their exchange made it clear the Frenchman feels Celtic are back where they belong.

As it transpired, Celtic would end up being paired with Platini’s former club Juventus. But no words were required afterwards. Enough had already been said.

As he emerged from the auditorium, Lawwell was full of pride and said: “Everybody I have spoken to, from UEFA or the clubs, was absolutely delighted to see us back.

“I spoke to Michel Platini and he told me, ‘Every club wants to play Celtic and for the right reasons’.

“They love Celtic. They want to go to Celtic Park and they want to play us because of the friendliness and the type of club we are.

Neil Lennon and Peter Lawwell

“We believe we are a top-class European club in everything we do. We were recognised as that at the top table at this draw.

“When we speak to clubs, they say Celtic Park has the best atmosphere. They also like how we do business. They like our values, our standards and we are highly regarded throughout Europe.

“That’s not just after this season, that’s going way back. But this year has maybe reminded a few folk as we have come back to the fore.

“It reminds people just what Celtic is and what it can offer. It’s magnificent football club with a magnificent stadium and we can compete at the highest level.”

And when his team beats Barcelona it helps Lawwell’s cause in these corridors of power and he added: “That was a global story and I think it was just a reminder for people.

“We’ve always been respected but it’s more contemporary now. People are saying, ‘Wow, Celtic are back’.”

Lawwell was right to savour the moment. But deep down he’s a forward thinker and knows Celtic need to be mixing in such circles on a regular basis. And with so many top figures from so many powerful footballing countries in attendance, talk was obviously going to swing towards the European League concept.

With discussions under way regarding the championships of Russia and Ukraine merging, the subject is back on the agenda. Yet for all talk of Celtic linking up with other larger clubs in smaller nations in the future, there remains a feeling that regular involvement in occasions such as this last-16 draw might deem it all unnecessary.

Lawwell said: “UEFA recognise there is a chasm between the top five nations and the rest which is getting bigger. This regional league proposition coming through now is the first recognition that they need to do something about it.

“The news this week about Russia, Ukraine and Belarus didn’t surprise us. We knew there were chats going on there. People see us a breath of fresh air, achieving what we have from a country of five million people, but we need to emphasise we are flying the flag for Celtic and also for Scottish football.

“We’ve been getting battered in the last couple of years and hopefully we’re doing our bit for Scotland.

“We’d like to think Scottish football fans will get some satisfaction out of what we’re doing here and we need to be careful. We’re supporting the SPL, we’re supporting the reconstruction proposals and we are 100 per cent behind it.

“This is something we need to get on with now but in the future if things develop, we can’t be left behind. The flip side of this is if nations do merge – Dutch, Belgian, Russian, Ukrainian – they create bigger markets and we get smaller.

“The competition actually gets tougher and we are still there. It may be an opportunity but it could also be a threat if we don’t do something about it.

“Your natural partner is England with the rivalries. If it’s not the Premier League, it might be the English football league, but that’s a problem for another day.”

Recognising the natural impact making the Champions League group stages every year would have on the need for change, Lawwell said: “It would lessen it but that’s a challenge. Our standing is 26 in Europe this year, which means we will have three qualifiers next season.

“It could go up to 23 next year but would still have three qualifiers. But as long as we can keep our coefficient and our seeding high enough, which is the challenge, then you could be looking at the Euro league differently.

“As a club we are in a great place at the moment and we don’t have a view on anything else.

“This is the third time in six years that we’ve been in the last 16 of the Champions League. That’s a fantastic record.”

Lawwell believes such statistics are down to hard work behind the scenes and the infrastructure that has been put in place to ensure the future development and success of the club.

He said: “There’s an excitement around the club right now. We have a young, talented, ambitious management team and we have a young, talented team that we have created.

“We’re beginning to see green shoots of product. There’s a long way to go but we’re seeing progress from the strategy which has put us ahead of the game.

“Four or five years ago we recognised we had to do something different. Great credit to Neil Lennon, Garry Parker, Johan Mjallby, John Park, Chris McCart, Stevie Woods and the players.

“We have great people and good unity at the club. From Dermot Desmond to the board, to the management and the players. There is great unity.”